Which Pole Saw Brand Wins?
This head-to-head test of 10 pole saw options has the measured results for each. See how they ranked and watch the full test video.
GreenWorks
Price shown in test: $125
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The measured results
Every number below is read straight from the test. Products are listed in the order they finished.
Sprocket speed
- 1Sun Joe2,750 RPM
- 2GreenWorks4,015 RPM
- 3Black & Decker1,750 RPM
- 4DeWalt3,360 RPM
- 5Craftsman2,150 RPM
- 6Ryobiclose to2,900 RPM
(no-load)
- 7Worx1,640 RPM
- 8Oregon6,555 RPM
- 9EGO6,750 RPM
(fastest of all 10)
- 10Milwaukee
spec sheet lists 4,600 RPM; measured sprocket speed given as 4,620 RPM (both figures kept verbatim)
Noise level
- 1Sun Joe77.4 decibels
- 2GreenWorks84.9 decibels
- 3Black & Decker75.7 decibels
(quietest of all 10)
- 4DeWalt81.8 decibels
- 5Craftsman79.1 decibels
- 6Ryobi79 decibels
- 7Worx76 decibels
- 8Oregon99 decibels
(loudest of all 10)
- 9EGO92.2 decibels
- 10Milwaukee85.5 decibels
4x4 cut - full pressure (avg of 3)
- 1Sun Joe11 seconds
(11.35, 10.85, 10.85)
- 2GreenWorks5 seconds
(5.11, 4.71, 5.16)
- 3Black & Decker10.9 seconds
(11.25, 10.95, 10.49)
- 4DeWalt4.3 seconds
(4.35, 4.5, 4.15), took the lead this round
- 5Craftsmanabout7.7 seconds
(7.6, 7.35, 7.96)
- 6Ryobi6.3 seconds
(5.87, 6.54, 6.54)
- 7Worx5.3 seconds
(5.62, 5.21, 5.16)
- 8Oregon3.4 seconds
(3.49, 3.49, 3.28), took the lead this round
- 9EGO2.9 seconds
(3.08, 2.78, 2.78), took the lead this round
- 10Milwaukee2.32 seconds
(2.42, 2.12, 2.32), came out on top this round
4x4 cut - 2.5 lb light pressure (avg of 3)
- 1Sun Joe14.2 seconds
(12.57, 15.1, 14.55)
- 2GreenWorks5.8 seconds
(5.77, 5.72, 5.98)
- 3Black & Decker14.04 seconds
(14.7, 14.35, 14.09), last place this round
- 4DeWalt5.5 seconds
(5.42, 5.82, 5.31), barely edges GreenWorks
- 5Craftsman9.5 seconds
(9.63, 9.73, 9.12)
- 6Ryobi6.3 seconds
(6.08, 6.54, 6.23)
- 7Worx15.3 seconds
(15.21, 12.97, 17.64), last place this round
- 8Oregon3.3 seconds
(3.49, 3.28, 3.13), took the lead from DeWalt by over 2 seconds
- 9EGO2.7 seconds
(2.73, 2.68, 2.83), came out on top this round
- 10Milwaukee3.5 seconds
(3.79, 3.54, 3.28)
Hedge apple cut
- 1Sun Joe41 seconds
- 2GreenWorks21.5 seconds
- 3Black & Decker42.8 seconds
- 4DeWalt15.1 seconds
- 5Craftsman27.5 seconds
- 6Ryobi16.3 seconds
- 7Worx14.55 seconds
- 8Oregon10.24 seconds
took the lead this round
- 9EGO11.2 seconds2nd
second place behind Oregon
- 10Milwaukee8.41 seconds
came out on top this round
Pole test at 18in spacing
- 1Sun Joe80 in
length, 21 lbs front pressure, about 0.5 in sag
- 2GreenWorks91 in
length (11 in longer than Sun Joe), 20 lbs front pressure, sag just over 2 in
- 3Black & Decker112 in
length, 23 lbs front pressure, 5.5 in sag
- 4DeWalt112 in
length (same as Black & Decker), 31 lbs front pressure, 5.5 in sag
- 5Craftsman108 in
length, 23 lbs front pressure, 7 in sag (most sag of all 10)
- 6Ryobi109 in
length, 32 lbs front pressure, 5 in sag
- 7Worx116.5 in
length (longest), 41 lbs front pressure (heaviest to manage), 12.5 in sag (worst of all 10)
- 8Oregon110 in
length, 21 lbs front pressure, about 0.5 in sag (best pole strength/balance of all 10); 0.55 in of sag per foot of pole length
- 9EGO69 in
length (shortest), 11 lbs front pressure, about 0.5 in sag; with a 31 in extension (~$65), 26 lbs of front pressure
- 10Milwaukee67 in
length (shortest of all 10), 12 lbs front pressure, about 0.5 in sag; with a 31 in extension (~$120), 24 lbs of front pressure
How it was tested
- 4x4 pressure-treated lumber cut speed, full downward pressure, 3 cuts averaged
- 4x4 pressure-treated lumber cut speed, light 2.5 lb downward pressure, 3 cuts averaged
- hedge apple (5.5 in diameter hardwood) cut speed
- no-load sprocket speed (RPM)
- noise level (decibels)
- pole front-end pressure and sag at 18 in spacing, plus sag per foot of pole length
Brand head-to-head scoreboards featuring this test
Data notes and caveats
Ends in per-use-case recommendations rather than a single declared winner: budget pick = GreenWorks, quality pick = DeWalt (only if buyer already owns DeWalt batteries), best all-around out of the box = Oregon, premium picks for buyers willing to spend more = EGO and Milwaukee (both would need a purchased extension since they have the shortest poles). Milwaukee won 2 of 3 timed cut-speed rounds (full-pressure 4x4 and hedge apple) and EGO won the light-pressure 4x4 round, so no single brand swept the quantitative tests either. Transcript and description brand list matched cleanly throughout with no caption garbling of brand names; all 10 products in the description's Products Tested list and amzn.to link list are accounted for. One likely narration/caption inconsistency flagged in the Worx product notes (pole sag 'more than 20 times' Oregon's, but the two stated per-foot figures are only about 2.3x apart).
